Rhode Island School of Design: Statistics

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Position Category
#2322 of 14,131 In the World
#657 of 2,597 In North America
#600 of 2,496 In the United States
#6 of 12 In Rhode Island
#4 of 6 In Providence
#749 of 1,033 For Illustration and Concept Art
Subject rankings

Quick Review

Acceptance rate
19%
Average SAT
1463
Average ACT
33
Avg. cost to attend
$43,492 /y
Aid receiving
41%
Undergraduates
2,087
Graduates
433
Male:Female Ratio
28:72
Control
Private
not-for-profit
Highest Degree
Master's degree
Website
www.risd.edu

Rhode Island School of Design Acceptance rate and admissions statistics

Rhode Island School of Design has an acceptance rate of 19% and is among the top 5% of the most difficult universities to gain admission to in the United States. The university reports the admission statistics without distinguishing between local and international students.

Total Men Women
Acceptance Rate 19% 20% 18%
Applicants 6,692 1,406 5,279
Admissions 1,249 287 962
Freshmen enrolled full time 518 134 384

SAT scores

Among admitted applicants
80 or 15%
submitted SAT

25% of them
had 1396
or below

75% of them
had 1530
or below

Typical SAT scores of first-years in the Rhode Island School of Design are 1396-1530 (middle 50% range).

ACT scores

Among admitted applicants
17 or 3%
submitted ACT

25% of them
had 31
or below

75% of them
had 34
or below

Typical ACT scores of first-years in the Rhode Island School of Design are 31-34 (middle 50% range).

Admissions requirements

Formal demonstration of competencies Required
Recommendations Required
Secondary school GPA Required
Secondary school record Required
TOEFL Required
College-preparatory program Considered but not required
SAT/ACT Considered but not required
Secondary school rank Considered but not required
Other Tests Neither required nor recommended

Enrollment demographics by race or ethnicity

Nonresident Alien 924 (37%)
Asian 565 (22%)
White 564 (22%)
Hispanic 192 (8%)
Black or African American 114 (5%)
Two or more races 113 (4%)
Race or Ethnicity unknown 46 (2%)

Costs per year: Tuition, Housing, Fees

The average net cost to attend Rhode Island School of Design is $43,492 per year, calculated as the sum of the average cost of tuition, room and board, books, and supplies, reduced by the amount of average financial aid received.

The final cost of attendance varies for each student based on household income, residency, program, and other factors.

Net average cost to attend
$43,492/year
Average aid awarded
$38,223
Students receiving aid
41%

Average costs by household income

<$30K $29,135
$30-48K $30,233
$48-75K $25,872
$75-110K $33,893
$110K+ $64,493

Tuition and fees

UndergraduatesGraduates
Tuition in-district $61,564$61,564
Tuition in-state $61,564$61,564
Tuition out-of-state $61,564$61,564
Fee in-district $1,124$1,124
Fee in-state $1,124$1,124
Fee out-of-state $1,124$1,124

Room and board costs

Dormitory capacity 1,452
Combined charge for room and board $15,850
Room charge $9,830
Meal charge $6,796

Rhode Island School of Design majors

Rhode Island School of Design has granted 513 bachelor's degrees across 15 programs and 217 master's across 17 programs. Below is a table with majors that lead to degrees at Rhode Island School of Design.

Major Bachelor Master
Architectural and Building Sciences & Technology 54 74
Illustration 101 15
Systems Science and Theory 84 18
Computer Graphics 61 13
Painting 38 10
Film & Video and Photographic Arts, Other 39
Sculpture 32 6
Furniture Design and Manufacturing 26 10
Fiber, Textile and Weaving Arts 28 5
Sustainability Studies 21
Photography 9 7
Apparel and Textiles, General 15
Jewelry Arts 11 3
Art Teacher Education 13
Printmaking 8 3
Ceramic Arts and Ceramics 4 4
Cultural Studies & Critical Theory and Analysis 7
Fine Arts and Art Studies, Other 3 3
Digital Communication and Media & Multimedia 5
Grand Total 513 217

Rhode Island School of Design has a graduation rate of 89%, which is among the 5% highest for universities in the US.

Total Men Women
Graduation rate 89% 88% 89%
  • Full-time retention rate - 95%

Publications & Citations

Rhode Island School of Design has published 819 scientific papers with 8,767 citations received. The research profile covers a range of fields, including Liberal Arts & Social Sciences, Political Science, Art & Design, Law, Computer Science, History, Philosophy, Environmental Science, Engineering, and Sociology.

Publications
819
Citations
8,767

Publication / Citation count by topic

Liberal Arts & Social Sciences
644 / 6,629
Political Science
387 / 3,514
Art & Design
376 / 3,517
Law
369 / 3,465
Computer Science
358 / 3,463
History
357 / 3,074
Philosophy
353 / 5,008
Environmental Science
348 / 4,209
Engineering
337 / 3,004
Sociology
282 / 3,696
Geography and Cartography
273 / 3,201
Biology
243 / 3,677
Physics
226 / 2,104
Archaeology
222 / 2,729
Fashion Design
212 / 2,092
Psychology
190 / 3,228
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
163 / 1,479
Medicine
161 / 2,702
Art History
151 / 447
Linguistics
150 / 1,915
Business
149 / 1,269
Chemistry
143 / 1,913
Literature
114 / 765
Aesthetics
110 / 1,091
Quantum and Particle physics
109 / 1,077
Geology
105 / 1,511
Mechanical Engineering
105 / 723
Economics
104 / 1,240
Ecology
98 / 715
Mathematics
96 / 1,335
Materials Science
87 / 1,127
Theology / Divinity / Religious studies
81 / 976
Psychiatry
75 / 1,957
Paleontology
71 / 1,241
Library and Information science
70 / 194
Neuroscience
69 / 1,220
Social Psychology
68 / 1,721
Human-Computer Interaction
67 / 475
Classics and Ancient History
65 / 395
Management
61 / 702

Annual publication & citation counts

Year Publications Citations
1993 9 16
1994 5 15
1995 3 17
1996 7 22
1997 6 28
1998 15 31
1999 5 27
2000 5 43
2001 16 49
2002 11 31
2003 9 57
2004 11 58
2005 11 100
2006 16 112
2007 12 90
2008 17 144
2009 11 155
2010 22 172
2011 23 189
2012 13 276
2013 22 259
2014 27 246
2015 47 300
2016 24 316
2017 29 335
2018 36 404
2019 37 622
2020 47 631
2021 38 724
2022 43 762
2023 44 904
2024 48 834
2025 26 763
Academic rankings

Rhode Island School of Design alumni

  1. James Franco

    James Franco
    Born in
    United States Flag United States
    Years
    1978-.. (age 48)
    Occupations
    film editorfilm actorfilm producerfilm directortelevision presenter
    Biography

    James Edward Franco is an American actor and filmmaker. He has starred in numerous films, including Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy (2002–2007), Milk (2008), Eat Pray Love (2010), Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011), Spring Breakers (2012), and Oz the Great and Powerful (2013). He has collaborated with fellow actor Seth Rogen on multiple projects, including Pineapple Express (2008), This Is the End (2013), The Interview (2014), Sausage Party (2016), and The Disaster Artist (2017), for which he won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor. Franco's performance in 127 Hours (2010) earned a Best Actor nomination at the 83rd Academy Awards.

  2. Seth MacFarlane

    Seth MacFarlane
    Born in
    United States Flag United States
    Years
    1973-.. (age 53)
    Enrolled in the Rhode Island School of Design
    Studied animation
    Occupations
    film producershowrunnerlyricistanimatortelevision producer
    Biography

    Seth Woodbury MacFarlane is an American actor, animator, writer, producer, director, comedian, and singer. He is the creator and star of the television series Family Guy and The Orville, and co-creator of the television series American Dad! and The Cleveland Show. He also co-wrote, co-produced, directed, and starred in the films Ted, its sequel Ted 2, and A Million Ways to Die in the West.

  3. David Byrne

    David Byrne
    Born in
    United Kingdom Flag United Kingdom
    Years
    1952-.. (age 74)
    Occupations
    record producercomposerprintmakerwritersinger
    Biography

    David Byrne is an American musician, writer, visual artist, and filmmaker. He was a founding member and the principal songwriter, lead singer, and guitarist of the new wave band Talking Heads.

  4. Gus Van Sant

    Gus Van Sant
    Born in
    United States Flag United States
    Years
    1952-.. (age 74)
    Occupations
    film directordirectoractorfilm producerfilm editor
    Biography

    Gus Green Van Sant Jr. is an American filmmaker, photographer, painter, and musician. He has earned acclaim as an independent filmmaker, and is considered to be one of the most prominent auteurs of the new queer cinema movement. His films typically deal with themes of marginalized subcultures, especially within gay culture.

All 100 notable alumni

General info

Alternative names RISD
Founded 1877
Academic calendar September to June
Total FTE staff 984
Carnegie classification Master's Colleges & Universities: Larger Programs

Location and contacts

Address 20 Washington Place
Providence, Rhode Island, 02903-2784
United States
City population 191,000
Phone 4014546100

Rhode Island School of Design in social media